Gonzalez Attempts to Make Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders

Cathie Gonzalez, 22, a former member of the Snake Charmers, the dance team for the NBA Development League's Rio Grande Valley Vipers, tried out for the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders this summer. Her attempt to make the squad will be documented in the upcoming reality television show Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team, that will appear on Country Music Television next month.

Gonzalez attended McAllen High then moved to California to pursue her dream of becoming an entertainer. Gonzalez had the opportunity to showcase her dancing and singing skills when trying out for the Cowboys Cheerleaders.Q: What made you decide to try out to be a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader?

A: I actually had been wanting to try out for the past three years and never got a chance to. I got the application and told myself I don't know if I'm ready so I never submitted the application. But the whole Vipers thing and working with (Snake Charmers director Nora Cano) and feeling the whole vibe with the Cowboys told me it was something I needed to try. I said, "You know what Nora, I think I'm going to try and submit the application," and it took me all the way to where I'm at. I'm glad I did that.

Q: Can you describe the experience of trying out to be a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader?

A: It was extraordinary. It was one of the most difficult challenges ever in my life. It was completely different from any other audition because CMT was there. At most auditions you just have the dancing and the interviews. This was completely different. TV broadcasters were all over the place. There was pressure 24/7, so many beautiful women, so much talent. You just have to really bring your game and just be confident, that's the No. 1 thing. When they see that, they know you're good.

Q: What can viewers expect from you on the television series?

A: That part is a little difficult because you don't know exactly what clips they're going to put on there. Being on the show is a lot different; you become somebody else. You're so nervous the nerves take the best of you. You want to be how they perceive you. There are so many girls and different personality types you don't want to mess it up and you become a shy and timid person. I'm from the Valley and very outgoing and social. When you go to Dallas (for the tryouts) you hold all that in because you don't know what they expect out of you. A lot of people seeing the show will be, "That's not Cathie, that's not her." When the cameras are rolling it's very hard to be that person. You have to be very careful. They might think you're a little too much or it's fake.

Q: How do you think you'll come across on the show?

A: The way I think they would perceive me is not the way they perceived me in the Valley. Judges would tell me everything you say sounds premeditated. It just doesn't sound like something that would come from you. I like using big words, I speak that way, I write that way. Maybe they don't know me that well. I had to cut back a little from sounding so ... smart. They don't know you. They kind of perceive you as this person but you are afraid of the remarks and the replies you'll get back from them. It's really different.I also took my ethnicity with me coming from the Valley. Being Hispanic, I knew that was something they wanted to see. I really incorporated my culture with that and a lot of times I got interviewed they would ask me my ethnicity and asked me to speak Spanish and translate what I said to English. They loved that. My Valley life, I took it with me.

Q: Will you try any other reality shows like Flavor of Love or Rock of Love?

A: No, nothing like that. No Flavor Flav. Reality TV shows take over a lot of what you do because of the drama that they want to see so sometimes they ask you to do things that you wouldn't do but it's for drama and what people want to see on TV. You think they're going to edit it. It's funny how they did things and funny how producers ask questions. It's difficult but you have to understand they're trying to make a show and make it interesting to watch. It's something I would definitely try again. I don't think I would do Flavor of Love or Rock of Love. Crazy reality shows, that's just not me.